The present invention relates to enclosed switching apparatus comprising a circuit breaker, and a disconnecting switch.
A conventional enclosed switching apparatus generally comprises a combination of a circuit breaker, a disconnecting switch, and a grounding switch, each being formed as an independent enclosed unit. The units are adaptable to various types of electric circuits. With this construction, there is an advantage that a fault in one of the units does not extend to others. Where the circuit breaker, which serves the most essential role and occupies the largest space in an enclosed switching apparatus, is of a gasfilled type, the breaking operation produces a decomposition gas. With the conventional enclosed switching apparatus, production of the decomposition gas in the circuit breaker unit does not affect the disconnecting switch or the grounding switch. However, because the units are separately enclosed, the overall size and the cost of the conventional enclosed switching apparatus are relatively large.